Konrad Tomaszkiewicz, director of The Witcher 3 and a key player in Cyberpunk 2077's development, has left CD Projekt Red after accusations of being a bully around the company. The Witcher 3 director was exonerated of these allegations following an official investigation, but Tomaszkiewicz still felt the need to depart the company after the fact.
This sudden departure comes as CDPR is seemingly developing a new entry in The Witcher series. Although it's unknown if the studio is developing a direct sequel to the third game, it seems like it'll likely be the developer's next big single-player game. The Witcher 3 put CD Projekt Red on almost ever player and critic's radar thanks to its compelling story, well-realized world, and tone. It was a true achievement, but maybe at the cost of the mental health of some employees.
According to a Bloomberg (paywall) report, that Konrad Tomaszkiewicz has left CDPR and apologized to staff via email after having been found not guilty in an internal investigation. “Nonetheless, a lot of people are feeling fear, stress or discomfort when working with me,” he wrote in his apology. Tomaszkiewicz also served as a design director on the disastrous (but high-selling) Cyberpunk 2077, possibly suggesting that he could've been a negative influence on staff that interfaced with him during the game's troubled development.
Bloomberg notes Tomaszkiewicz was expected to play a big role in the development of the next Witcher game, but he is now allegedly taking time to work on himself. It's struck some odd that someone who isn't guilty of bullying his staff would depart following an investigation that found him innocent. Perhaps the amount of people that felt he was a negative influence led him to feel that things would be better at CDPR without him. The Witcher 3 still prints money for publisher CD Projekt almost six years after release, so he's clearly played a pivotal role in that sustained success. It seems unlikely CPDR would let him walk without good reason, so the true reason for his departure could be more complicated.
The Witcher 3 is still expected to get a current-gen upgrade later this year, but it'll be interesting to see how the rest of the series is impacted. The studio is no doubt filled with tons of talented creators and there's likely plenty of people that would be interested in joining the team to help realize the story of the next entry. Regardless, it's good to see CD Projekt Red trying to drain any toxicity from the studio after the troubling reports from the development of Cyberpunk 2077.
The Witcher 3 is available on PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC, and it will launch for PS5 and Xbox Series X/S in H2 2021.
Source: Bloomberg